IMHO, if money is no object, hardwood floors everywhere always look elegant. Even if they are mostly covered, it's that peek-a-boo, like the perfect 1/2' reveal on a man's suit, that just looks so right. Because we were using wide plank random widht pine, i didnt want the expense of using it in upstairs bedrooms. I used sisal wall to wall, which to me is almost as good a foil for area rugs as hardwood, both functionally and aesthetically. As for the cleaning issue, our GC put us up in a rental home while our house was being finished, and it had very dark walnut floors downstairs and upstairs. We had come from a home that was all hardwood floors, and never had an issue. But the dark floors were a total pita, even with twice-weekly housekeeping. I felt you could even SEE dust on the dark walnut.

well as to the weather issue...in our home in alaska we ripped out the carpet everywhere (20 year old carpet is so gross by the way...even if you think you're clean) and have hardwood. I would never go back to w2w. in washington we have w2w in many rooms in our victorian and it's all coming up eventually. I've gotten it out of four rooms and have...e gads too many to go but it's GOING! Carpets can be cleaned and removed as you wish...w2w never goes away and the dirt does build up. There's a reason that when you buy a house you get a "carpet allowence" (to change out someone elses carpet) and when you have wood it's written up as a bonus for value :) I'm also a barefoot girl at home (you get that way in alaska...no one wears shoes inside) as is my son. He does not like the wall to wall here either (he's 6 and has strong opinions on decor). He likes his "fuzzy rugs" (sheepskins) so much better!

Carpets are warm and quiet underfoot. The noise dampening of carpet is not to be under estimated. Carpet prevents noise from moving OUT of a room and into another room as well as prevents noise ENTERING from underneath (ahem...the family room). That being said, the carpet is NOT the part that offers the noise reduction....it is the HIGH END PAD that offers the noise reduction. To get the noise reduction properties of carpet, you have to work with a more expensive carpet pad. Simply throwing down commercial grade berber over plywood (as an example) will not offer any form of acoustic properties. A hardwood floor can be used to reduce noise with SEVERAL requirements being Added to the installation. Of course, first and foremost the subfloors for those bedrooms need to be assessed to ensure a happy install. You might find that the hardwood install requires a LOT more preparation (ahem...costs and materials) than you anticipated. OK, assuming things are ready to role without much effort (rarely happens but let's just play along for a moment) the hardwood will need an acoustic underlayment (such as 6mm or 12mm cork underlayment). It is the underlayment (again...it is all about what sits UNDERNEATH the floor) that absorbs the noise, not the wood itself. The underlayment can add 1/4" (6mm) or even 1/2" (12mm) worth of floor-height raise onto a hardwood that might already be 3/4" thick. Oh dear. Check your door clearance. Most doors can handle a floor that is (roughly) 3/4" thick. That means most interior doors can handle 3/4" hardwood or a thick carpet + thick pad or even laid tile (can sit roughly 3/4") without having to remove/trim and rehang the darn things. But let's imagine this isn't going to be so easy. Let's imagine the hardwood needs a STIFFER subfloor which might mean another 1/2" of plywood. And now you want to add in 1/4" of cork for noise dampening. And then you choose a 3/4" solid hardwood. Uh Oh. You have just added 1 1/2" worth of floor height in those rooms. Hmmmmmm. Now the doors have to be trimmed and rehung. Oh wait and now the hallway floor sits REALLY low which means a BIG transition in the doorways. Whew. A beautifully thick carpet and thick pad will max out at 3/4". Doors and baseboards should be able to handle that thickness without much issue. The real trick will be the hardwood. What is the flooring OUTSIDE the bedrooms? What is currently INSIDE the bedrooms? What are your door clearances CURRENTLY sitting at? What is the subfloor thickness? How much noise enters/exits those rooms with the current set up?

I'm excited to install all LVP throughout our house. This is the first time we've had hard floors in the bedrooms. I like the opportunity to decorate the room with a large rug rather than having to stick with the same neutral carpet forever. I would caution that the cost of a quality large rug for even a queen size bed is costly and then most of it's underneath the bed so we're looking for something affordable if it ends up being a basic design.